A deep dive into the intersection of research and impact
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to the SIA guide to research, with a particular focus on its applications to the social impact space. Research plays a key role as it allows us to understand the root causes of problems, ways to improve the ecosystem and how we can best solve problems. With so many emerging, innovative approaches to solving social issues, it’s critical for you to be able to evaluate alternatives and opportunities as they arise. The goal of this guide is to provide you with tangible learning outcomes no matter what level of knowledge you enter with. Our goal is for you to emerge with a stronger grasp of the foundational concepts of research.
By reading this guide you will:
engage with the concepts of research ethics, impact measurement for social enterprises, and market research.
learn what a research focused career could look like if this field is of particular interest to you.
find further resources and readings provided on all subjects discussed.
RESEARCH ETHICS
Various disciplines, institutions, and professions have standards for behaviour that govern the actions of their members. These ethical guidelines coordinate the actions of members and establish trust for the practice at large – whether it is engineering, medicine, or law.
IMPACT MEASUREMENT
Early references to Design Thinking originated in the aftermath of WWII, which had a deep effect on the way engineers, scientists, and creatives approached problem solving and strategic thinking. Throughout the 50s and 60s, there were efforts made to apply a scientific methodology to the field of design in order to understand and overcome the human and environmental challenges that could not be solved through other means.
Go over our list of courses available at different universities and online, as well as our list of organizations working in the space to get started!
MARKET RESEARCH
It is important to recognize that design is a powerful tool that holds a lot of privilege in terms of the influence it can have on the media, urban planning, and economic systems around the world. Similar to other structures of power, design can be used to uphold systems oppression (capitalism, patriarchy, heteronormativity) or be used to lift marginalized voices and communities by engaging and designing solutions with them.
Below are the 10 ways designers can support social justice by the Design Justice Network.
"DESIGNING INSTEAD OF FOR"
– Design Justice Network
10 Ways Designers Can Support Social Justice
Learn more about Design Justice Network through their Look out for the latest Zines on their website and below!
In this section you’ll see frameworks, case studies, and tools professionals apply in the field of design thinking. A case study spotlight will follow so you can see how some of these frameworks are applied in real life!
TEN TYPES OF INNOVATION BY DOBLIN
This framework created by Doblin is used to develop viable innovations and identify new opportunities beyond just creating new products. Additional resources are available as a book (sample here) and as Innovation Tactic cards. These 10 types of innovation can be broken down into three sections:
Configuration types focus on the ways organizations work from within (business model, stuctures, processes)
Offering types focus on the main product or service of a company
Experience types focus on the elements that your end-users will interact with
Read a summary about each type below and visit their website for more details!
New ways to turn organization's offerings into cash
Product system
How you create complementary offerings
Connecting products and services that would otherwise be distinct offerings
Network
How you connect with others to make value
Relying on other organizations' strengths through collaboration to increase the value of offerings
Service
How you amplify your offerings
Enhancing the value of your services and products, making it them easier or more enjoyable to use
Structure
How you orgranize and align your assets
Using unique ways to organize your human, financial, or intangible assets to improve your offerings
Channel
How you deliver offerings
Ways you connect your offerings to your end-users
Process
How you use signature methods to do work
Improving internal processes to make an organization adapt quickly
Brand
How you represent your organization
Improving the way you "package" your services and offering to be memorable
Product Performance
How you develop unique features
Focusing on improving the features and qualities of your offerings
Customer engagement
How you nurture relationships
Developing meaningful connections with end-users
THE FIVE STAGE PROCESS OF DESIGN THINKING BY THE STANFORD D.SCHOOL
The Stanford d.school is one of the biggest players in the space and they have developed many wonderful resources to take you through the design thinking journey, no matter where you’re at! Below are the 5 steps they follow to start the process:
1. Empathize
Immerse yourself into the physical environment of the problem that is trying to be solved. Observe and engage with the end-user to understand their experience and motivation.
2. Define the problem
Compile the information gathered during the empathize stage, analyze and synthesize observations in order to define the core issues in a problem statement.
3. Ideate
Brainstorm as many new solutions to the problem statement as possible.
4. Prototype
Produce a number of inexpensive versions of the final product or service for a test group of end users to trial. The team should have a better idea of the problems present and how users would behave, think, and feel when interacting with the final product.
5. Test
Rigorous testing of the complete product using the best prototypes from the stage before.
As a leading design thinking firm, IDEO has developed frameworks and resources to support new and experienced designers. Below are the three steps they follow in their process and a case study to exemplify all of them!
A Campaign and Movement to Raise Awareness of Birth Justice by IDEO.org
CHALLENGE
”Black women in the U.S—regardless of class or education—are 2‑to‑3 times more likely to die during childbirth and 60% more likely to have a premature baby than their white counterparts. The fight for Birth Justice is the fight for Black and Brown women to have the pregnancy they want, deserve, and have been systematically excluded from. The UCSF California Preterm Birth Initiative looked to IDEO.org to help build their momentum and amplify their impact.” – IDEO
1. INSPIRATION
Interviews and co-design sessions with mothers, fathers, grandparents, caregivers, preconception women, doctors, nurses, doulas, lactation consultants, community leaders, organizers, educators, and birth justice experts.
2. IDEATION
Prototypes of different campaign materials to mobilize mothers in communities of color (posters in doctors’ offices, clinics and Facebook posts)
Materials were co-designed by moms from different racialized groups (Latinx and Black)
Community feedback informed the final version of materials
3. IMPLEMENTATION
Design team relied on local communities’ existing work and networks
Resource aggregator to connect parents to own local resources was created
Roadmap to execute awareness campaigns was designed for communities to launch their own campaigns
OUTCOME
Voices for Birth Justice was launched as a public awareness campaign in honor of World Prematurity Day in 2019.